Sometimes Love Isn't Enough
by Starsabove0oru
Summary: My name is Naruto and I'm a freshman at Konoha University. I'm in love with this boy named Sasuke. Maybe after I tell my story I'll finally be able to let go of him. I've grown so much in the past few months and I want the world to know. AU SasuNaru
1. Prologue: The Red Hoodie

**Hello everyone! Sometimes Love Isn't Enough is an AU. I don't own Naruto or any of the characters, but this story is mine. The parts where Naruto narrates will be in bold. ****I listened to Regina Spektor's "Samson" on repeat while writing this. The first line "You are my sweetest downfall... I loved you first." really resonated with me. **

**Pairings: Sasuke/Naruto & others shall be revealed. **

**Rating: T for language, alcohol, drug use, and sexual content.**

**Enjoy!

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PROLOGUE: THE RED HOODIE

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**Hello, my name is Naruto Uzumaki. I'm eighteen now, I'll be nineteen in April. This is my story, a story I feel I need to tell. This is the tale of my freshman year at college, the tale of the special boy I met, and all the memories we shared together. I love him; I love him more than I've ever loved anyone. I've made so many different friends, made so many mistakes, danced like an idiot in public and of course, bullshitted through so many papers. College is no doubt a million times better than high school.**

**But this story begins in my senior year in high school, when I first met him. Who would've thought our relationship would begin (at least, for me) with a comfy, red hoodie?**

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Naruto was cursing himself for agreeing to go on an overnight at Kohona University. His host was very nice, although a bit crazy and way out of control when drunk. And his host, Lee, was _VERY_ drunk. Clearly he was hornier while intoxicated, because he was rubbing up on every boy and girl he danced with. But at least Lee had ordered Domino's Pizza a while ago, so Naruto had something to look forward to.

Lee was a freshman at KU and had wanted to show Naruto how fun parties could be. He wanted the blonde to meet other students and other prospective students (who were affectionately dubbed "specs"). So Lee had dragged Naruto to some upper classmen's suite where there was a party going on.

Lee was very social and instantly ran off to talk to his friends as soon as he arrived. The blonde didn't mind watching everyone else getting drunk and dancing like fools. And soon enough, he met other people who liked watching them too. So the group had formed a little "club", sitting on the floor and joking around and laughing.

There was a whole bunch of dancing and drinking and dry humping going on around him. But Naruto didn't drink. His policy was: "If I can hyper off of a candy cane can you imagine what I'd do if I got high or drunk??? I'd probably jump off the roof!!" Needless to say, most of his friends from home agreed with him. But Naruto wasn't really among friends right now, although he was getting to know his new companions.

"I'm cold…" Naruto found himself complaining repeatedly.

The blonde didn't mean to whine, but there was definitely a draft in the room. Someone must have opened a window or something. The others could barely hear him over the music. Finally, one boy in the group turned to Naruto. The teen couldn't remember the boy's name; they had all introduced themselves before, but that was hours ago. "Want my hoodie?" The dark-haired teen cocked his head to one side. The other boy was almost completely sober, as he had only had one drink and was casually sipping a second one.

"Uh… sure… thanks." Naruto studied the boy as he took off his red hoodie and handed it to Naruto. Naruto slipped it on happily, relishing in its warmth and all was right with the world. "Sasuke, right?" _I hope that's his name, if not I just made a fool out of myself…_

"Yeah and you're Naruto." Sasuke smiled at the blonde and Naruto thought he melted a bit on the inside. Or maybe Sasuke was only smiling because of the alcohol in his system. He made a mental note to find the boy the morning after and talk to him while he was alcohol free. And as soon as it came, their moment ended and the two boys returned to the conversation their buddies were having.

Naruto couldn't help himself, he kept stealing looks at Sasuke. Something about the boy was so captivating. And plus, he was nice, too! The two boys barely knew each other and he was wearing an article of his clothing. Naruto inwardly smiled; he felt special, as if wearing this red hoodie was some kind of honor that had been bestowed upon him.

The happy group continued talking about everything and nothing until it was apparent that the party was beginning to end. More people were leaving and less people were coming in. Naruto watched as Sasuke and a few other guys got up to leave. Was one of them named Kiba?

"Oh yea… can I have my hoodie back?" Naruto jumped and looked up at Sasuke, who was towering over him.

"Oh… sorry!" Naruto scrambled to take it off and give it back to the boy. "Thanks again!"

"No problem." Sasuke grinned at Naruto and took off with the others. "See ya."

"Bye…" For some reason, Naruto just didn't want Sasuke to leave.

"Hey, do you wanna leave with us?" Naruto turned his head and saw Tenten looking at him with a sympathetic smile on his face.

"I would… but I have to stay here. My host is here." Naruto grimaced at Lee, who was grinding up against some blonde male. The lanky boy was holding a liter of soda in one hand and a bottle of alcohol in the other. Tenten shook her head at Lee and gestured to her boyfriend, who had brown hair, just like her.

"Neji, let's go. And Naruto, Lee isn't always like this. He's just been stressed out lately because of bio." Tenten let out a sigh. "He deserves to have fun; he's always working so hard…"

"He's going to be hung over in the morning." Neji interrupted stoically. Tenten smacked Neji in the back of the head.

"Anyways, be careful, Naruto!" Tenten grinned at the blonde teen and turned to leave. Part of Naruto screamed at him and told him to go with Tenten, but he knew he couldn't. Drunk as Lee was, he still had the keys to the dorm. Where all of Naruto's stuff was. So he literally couldn't leave Lee.

"If Lee's coherent by the time you leave, tell him that I'm spending the night in Tenten's room." Neji ordered, throwing an arm around the girl's shoulders.

"Thanks! I will!" Naruto pouted to himself. _Great, now I'm all alone with a bunch of drunken people. How the hell do I get myself into these situations?_

At first, Naruto was fine. For the most part, people just ignored him and he sat down in chair, watching the other people. The party really was winding down, so maybe Lee would finally get tired and leave. The blonde had been staring off into space, which was probably a mistake, because when he finally focused on his surroundings, he realized something was wrong.

There was an older male walking around the room. Naruto froze; something was off with this one. All the other drunks were funny and friendly (one of them even promising to protect Naruto), but this one was just weird. Naruto always had strong instincts and he followed them accordingly. The weirdo was pale and his eyes were glazed over and he was sauntering towards Naruto who was practically immobilized in his chair.

_Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit…_ Naruto gulped, his blue eyes widening in fear as the drunken male finally reached him.

"I'll be anything you want me to be." The man leaned over and took Naruto's hand in his. His eyes were almost demonic, but Naruto knew it was the alcohol. It had to be.

_**GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE NOW!**_ Naruto's mind bellowed at him. The blonde stood up quickly and ran out of the room. No one even noticed his departure; they were all too drunk. He quickly asked someone out in the hall where the bathroom was and upon finding it, locked himself in it for a few minutes.

Naruto stared at himself in the mirror as his breathing returned to normal. Spiky, unruly blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and six whisker-like scars greeted him. _I'm ok, I'm ok… _He slowly calmed himself down.

"NARUUUUUUUUUUTO!!! Where'd you go??" Naruto could hear Lee shouting and shook his head, chuckling a little bit. Naruto left the bathroom and found Lee stumbling around the hallway. "There you are!!!!!!!"

"Yeah, I'm here." Naruto smiled up at the bug-eyed boy.

"Are you ready to leave??? The pizza's here! And we got breadsticks, too, right??" Lee was so happy, he did a little dance. "Let's go!!!" And the exuberant freshman led Naruto through the building. "You'll have to hold the pizza, though, I'm too drunk to hold anything!!"

"Ok, I'll do it." Naruto was getting a bit excited himself. The creeper was gone, he was about to get pizza, and maybe he could even watch a movie once they got back to Lee's room. Plus, Neji wasn't coming back so he could even sleep on the brunette's bed instead of on the sleeping bag he brought.

"You don't think I'm a bad host, do you??" Lee suddenly turned to Naruto, tears filling his eyes. "I was just trying to show you a good time! But then I got all drunk and you're probably disgusted with me. I'm sorry!!!!"

"Ah, no, no, it's ok!" Naruto protested. "I had a lot of fun, I met a whole bunch of people and…" _Sasuke… I met him. Yeah, Lee, I'm glad you brought me._

"Ok, that's good!!" Lee was back to his joyful, drunken self. And the two teens strolled off towards the man impatiently waiting to give them a box of delicious pizza.

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**And that was when I first met him. Sasuke. I knew I was going to attend KU because of the scholarship they gave me and I prayed that Sasuke was, too. I remember going home and telling all my friends about this boy. All my closest friends knew I was gay and none of them had a problem with it. As a matter of fact, they were excited for me. **

**Well because, I've never had a boyfriend before. I mean, I had one during the summer at soccer camp before seventh grade, but that doesn't really count right? We never even went on a date… isn't that pathetic? I'm eighteen and I've never had a real boyfriend. And of course, every crush I've had… has always been unrequited. Unrequited love is such a bitch… and yet I ended up falling for Sasuke. **

**They sure did bring us freshman in early that semester. I was the first one in our group of friends to leave for college. Iruka, Tsunade-baachan, and even Ero-sennin helped me move into my dorm that hot August day. I made a lot of friends those first few days at school. The school had a bunch of "ice breaker" activities for us, trips and events to help us get to know one another before the upperclassmen showed up and all hell broke loose. **

**I finally saw Sasuke again at one of them. I remember how happy I was to see him again and I even remembered his face, despite the fact that I hadn't seen or talked to him since that night. That fatal night when Sasuke gave me his hoodie… and when I took it off, a piece of my heart had been embedded into it. I didn't realize it then, but he already owned me.

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Naruto was walking down the gravel path. The last activity was dumb as hell. It involved too much moving around and excitement and not enough sitting down and getting to know people. "Hey, Naruto!" The blonde turned and saw Kiba running towards him.

"Hey, Kiba. What's up?" Naruto smiled as Kiba began walking with him, chatting on and on about how much he had schemed to sneak his dog, Akamaru, into his dorm room. Naruto, in turn, told Kiba about the pornography Ero-sennin tried to give to him. But Tsunade-baachan had seen and had made the quick decision to throw Naruto's fridge at the old pervert.

"Kiba!" Naruto turned at the sound of another boy's voice. Before he knew it, someone had jumped in between Kiba and himself. It was Sasuke! Naruto's heart began pounding, taking in the boy's features. The three boys stopped walking for a moment and Sasuke turned to Naruto. The youth held out his hand to Naruto.

"Hi, I'm Sasuke." Sasuke flashed Naruto a quick grin.

Naruto cocked his to one side and stared at Sasuke. _He doesn't remember…_ The blonde inwardly sighed. "I met you already."

"I did?" Sasuke's black eyes widened for an instant and his hand dropped to his side. A guilty look flashed over his face.

"Yeah… you gave me your hoodie cuz I was cold." Naruto blinked slowly. _I understand how he forgot. It was months ago. It might not have been important to him… but it was one of the nicest things a boy has ever done for me. _

"You were probably too wasted to remember!" Kiba laughed out loud and smacked Sasuke on the back. Sasuke didn't even turn to his friend, he was focused on Naruto.

"I'm sorry… I thought I recognized your face, but I wasn't sure. Could you tell me your name again?" Sasuke smiled apologetically.

"Naruto…" Naruto beamed back.

"Was it warm?" Sasuke asked Naruto, referring to the hoodie as the three boys began walking towards the cafeteria.

"Yeah…" Naruto smiled softly up at the sky.

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**I knew then that I was developing a little crush on Sasuke. I felt then that we were supposed to be together, that fate had brought him to me that day. Or maybe it was just a coincidence and I'm just reading too much into it. I should've listened to Iruka. He told me before I left not to put all my eggs in one basket. He knew how much I wanted to see Sasuke again. He told me there were plenty of boys to meet in college and that I shouldn't focus on just one. But I couldn't help myself. **

**For once, I took the offensive and after finding out where Sasuke's room was, I actually went to visit him. Imagine my shock when I realized that he lived right above me (and a few doors over) on the second floor. I'm usually not that brave, but-my best friend/sister I never had- Sakura encouraged me to do it. I love Sakura; she's a genius and she's going to be a doctor. She goes to Sunaga University, which is a hard school to get into. Even though we're far away from each other, I know I can always turn to her for advice. I'm surprised she didn't punch me over winter break for talking about Sasuke so much… **

**Despite the fact that I love reminiscing and thinking about Sasuke, it's getting late and I haven't finished reading for class tomorrow. So I guess I'll end it here for now and continue on when I have more time. He's always prevalent in my mind, even when I'm doing my homework…

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Ok, so that's it for now. Chapter One covers Naruto's first visit to Sasuke's room, getting used to his classes, the food, his roommate, and more.

If you liked it, please review and let me know what you thought of it.


	2. Chapter 1: Wanna Help Me With Spanish?

**Hi! Here's the first chapter. I hope everyone likes it. If you're reading this I'm so happy you're taking the time to read it and a special thanks to: Emma,** **O Desperado Sweetie O, XxTypoMasterxX, Dark-Deva and professorkatze for reviewing!!**

**I wrote the majority of this chapter while listening to two songs: Mona Lisa by Slick Rick & Us Placers by CRS & Thom Yorke. Lol I have this habit of putting songs on repeat and then just losing myself in the music and before I know it, I've typed four pages and whatnot. Like for my essay (urg took me forever to finish it) I was listening to No Place Like London from Sweeney Todd. Anyways, here's the chapter!**

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CHAPTER ONE: 

**Wanna Help Me With Spanish?

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**Well today was a crappy, rainy Friday. I wish the sun would come out. I went to visit him again. I don't know why I do. I don't think Sasuke even wants me around anymore. I think I'm just a hindrance; someone he just lets come around because he feels sorry for me. I feel sorry for me. Actually it still is Friday and everything still is crappy. Shika is probably wondering what's wrong with me. You're what's wrong with me. I love you and I don't want to let go of you but I know that you don't feel the same way. I'm a fucking hopeless optimist, lost in you, lost in your essence. **

**I think the rain factors into my mood. If it was sunny out, I think I'd be a bit happier. I mean, he was busy today. Maybe that's why he couldn't stay in his room for long. It's not like we're going out; he has no obligation to tell me where he's going. He had to be somewhere at three and he had nice pants on so I guess he was going somewhere kinda formal. **

**I didn't ask him where he was going. I didn't want to seem nosy. Maybe he was going out on a date with some hot girl, someone who's a million times better looking with me. I mean, look at these ugly scars on my face. How can anyone ever think I'm remotely attractive? I'm not even eating dinner at a normal time. I have to tutor this eighth grader in Algebra I and I don't even feel like it. It's my job; I'm a tutor for little people. It's some service KU has for the community. The parents bring their kids to campus and we bright students tutor them. I would eat before but I just don't feel like it. I'm not hungry.**

**I know, huge eye-opener right? Naruto Uzumaki… not hungry?!? I would give anything to throw my problems away and eat some ramen and smile, but these feelings I have for you don't allow me to do that. There's this Facebook bumper sticker and it says: "Never give up on someone you can't go a day without thinking about" and the first time I read it was a few months ago and I was pumped up and ready to fight for your love. Now when I think about it, I want to give up on you because staying in love with you hurts too much. And I can't go a day without thinking of you; that much is impossible. **

**I'm pissed off… or as you would say, Sasuke… I'm "heated". The Internet on this comp isn't working, which is why I'm writing this cuz I sure as hell can't do anything else. Even my iTunes is being a little bitch and I had to close it and open it back up again. I can pick and choose various things and explain why this is such a miserable day. But thinking about the here and now will just make me even more upset. I was much happier last year, because I was full of hope. Once a friendship is born, it's new and it's beautiful and no strings are attached. I wish I could return to those days…

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It was already the second week of classes at KU and Naruto was done with his for the day. He had four classes: psychology, philosophy, Spanish, and some class that was like a weird combination of philosophy and English. The blonde had no need to take Japanese or English because he thanks to Ero-sennin, he was fluent in both languages. When the lecherous old man wasn't writing his porn novels, he wrote exciting tales in both languages just for Naruto when he was younger. The boy used to live for the adventures of the hero (who, oddly enough, had the same name as him) with a mysterious beast sealed inside of him. After growing up on these stories, Naruto was one of the only bilingual people he knew and subsequently decided to pick up a third language.

However, learning a new language was the least of his problems. Naruto clutched his cell phone, gulping. "Naruto… just do it!!" A female's voice shouted into the phone. The blonde was sitting in his chair, staring at the door warily. If his roommate, Shikamaru, came back in, he would have to rapidly change the subject. His roommate didn't know he was gay and Naruto didn't want things to become awkward between them.

"S-Sakura-chan I can't! I can't just go up to his room and knock on his door… I can't! It'll be weird. He never said I could visit him." Naruto took a deep breath. He knew that somehow, the pink-haired woman would convince him. She was smart like that. And then he would go to Sasuke's room… and make a complete fool out of himself. He was an idiot like that. "Plus… I don't even know where he lives!"

"WELL FIND OUT! I go and visit friends all the time! It's no big deal!" Sakura was getting more impatient by the second. "Just do it already!" Naruto opened his mouth to say something, but his brown-haired roommate strolled into the room.

"Uh… I have to go Sakura-chan. Bye!" Naruto quickly hung up the phone. "Hey Shikamaru! How was your meeting with your advisor?"

"Troublesome… it was very troublesome." Shikamaru gave Naruto an odd look. "You didn't have to get off the phone just because I came back… unless you were talking about me." The lazy teen took his shoes off and instantly reclined on his bed. The boys had decided to bunk their beds because it created more space in the room. Shikamaru had the bottom bunk and Naruto had the top one.

"Uh… no I wasn't I was talking about Sa-" Naruto's mouth slammed shut and a blush covered his cheeks. _Oh shit I almost blew it!!_ "I-I wasn't talking about you!"

"I was being sarcastic, Naruto, I know you weren't talking about me." Shikamaru let out a sigh. "It's such a nice day outside. Do you want to go look at some clouds?"

_Is my roommate a stoner?_ Naruto inwardly sighed. "I don't know… I think I have to meet with my advisor in a half-hour."

"Mmm… troublesome." Shikamaru yawned as he gazed out the window. "I forgot, what are you majoring in again?"

"Me? Well, I want to be a child psychologist. So I'm majoring in psychology." Naruto smiled proudly. "What about you?"

"No idea… if only I could get a Bachelor's in Shogi." Shikamaru groaned out loud. "I think I'm going to take a nap." Naruto burst out laughing at this.

"Do you want me to turn off the lights?" The blonde said between giggles.

"No… I can sleep with the lights on. Actually… I can sleep anywhere." Shikamaru chuckled to himself.

"Alright… I think I'll go visit Kiba." Naruto stood up and stretched.

"Mmm… ok." Shikamaru was already half-asleep. "Tell him I said hi."

"I will." Naruto smiled and left, closing the door behind him. Shikamaru was sarcastic at times, lazy all the time, but rather easy to get along with. The blonde went right next door and knocked on it hard. "KIBA!!! You in there??"

"What the hell do you want? Get in here!" The brunette grabbed Naruto by the arm and yanked him in the room, slamming the door behind them. Naruto snatched his arm back and took his seat on Kiba's bed. The other teen paced around the room with his arms crossed over his chest. He was completely lost in thought and he looked worried.

So when Kiba finally opened his mouth and spoke, Naruto had to hold back his laughter. His problem did not pertain to his classes, his advisor, homesickness, etc. "Dude, you have to be quieter! Our RA is becoming suspicious… I swear to God he must have eyes in the back of his freaking head!! I can't bring any more attention to myself than YOU already have. And it doesn't help that you live next door to him, either."

Naruto didn't mind their RA, Neji. Even though he was only a sophomore, he acted like he was a senior already. He just had that confident, commanding air about him. However, no matter how serious he might be, Naruto knew that he had a good heart, seeing as Tenten was his girlfriend. Plus Neji was extremely responsible and diligent, which were good qualities for a resident assistant to have.

"It's ok, Kiba. Even if Neji finds out, we can get Lee on our side." Naruto shook his head. "He's the RA upstairs, right?"

"Yeah he is… he seems like a complete psycho… we'll need him to plead our case."

"WE? Since when did _I_ get involved in all this?"

"You're a co-conspirator, Naruto. Or you're just guilty by association. Either way, you have no choice in the matter, you're helping me."

"Kiba…"

"How can you say no to this face?" Kiba ran over to his closet and pulled out a huge dog cage. A cute, white puppy with a brown nose leered up at Naruto curiously.

"…. KIBA!!!!!!!!!!" Naruto took one look at Akamaru and instantly fell for the adorable animal. "Fine, fine, I'll help you hide him. You owe me for this…"

"Naruto, you're the best!" Kiba let out a whoop of joy, letting Akamaru out of his cage and giving him to Naruto to hold. The puppy squirmed about in the teen's arms.

"I know, I know…" Naruto laughed, scratching Akamaru behind his ears. "But seriously… I think Neji does have eyes in the back of his head. Neji knows all." Kiba snorted taking his seat next to Naruto.

"Neji-_sama_ sees all."

"Neji-sama hears all."

"Neji-sama smells all."

"Neji-sama is omnipresent."

"Wow, Naruto, I didn't know your vocabulary was so rich!"

"Shut it, dog breath!"

"Don't test me, whisker face!"

The two boys looked at each other and burst out laughing. Naruto didn't understand how he and Kiba had hit it off in such a short amount of time, but he had a feeling that the two of them would become close, if not best friends, before the year was over. Naruto was a good judge of character and he could tell that Kiba was a good person.

_I'm happy I went away to college. I'm meeting so many new people and making a lot of friends!_ Naruto grinned to himself as their laughter died out. Kiba looked at his watch and cursed profusely. The blonde raised an eyebrow at him.

"Aw shit, I forgot. I borrowed Sasuke's bio book because I lost mine… Good thing some girl found it and gave it back to me. Turns out I left in class on Friday." Kiba scowled. "I gotta go give it back." Naruto's mouth dropped open. "Wanna come with me?"

"Er… no I have to go meet my advisor!" Naruto jumped off of Kiba's bed as if it was alive. "Gotta go, bye!!!" The blonde all but dashed out of the room, retreating to the sanctuary of his own residence.

Naruto carefully closed and locked his door. _The first time I visit him… I want it to be special. I want him to remember it. And I want him to know that I came… I came to see him. I didn't come because I was tagged along, I came because I wanted to see him. I want to see him, so bad. _The blonde slumped down in his chair and let out a long sigh. He knew that Shikamaru must've been passed out by now. Once that kid was asleep, the only thing that would wake him up was his stomach.

Naruto checked the time on his laptop. "Shit I'm late!!!!!!" The blonde leapt back up and darted out the door like the Devil himself was on his heels.

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Three days later, Naruto's ears were still ringing from his advisor's long lecture about punctuality. Danzo, his advisor, was creepy as Hell. The poor blonde wasn't sure if his advisor wanted to kill him or put him in a cage and experiment on him. Either way, he wanted a new advisor. The traumatized blonde was sitting in Spanish class, listening to Gai-sensei proclaim various things in words Naruto definitely didn't understand. The blonde was in the lowest level class so that he could learn. He definitely wasn't learning. 

"¡Mi gato es bonito!" Gai-sensei shouted loudly. (My cat is pretty!)

"¡Mota es mala!" Gai-sensei continued on, ignoring the looks his students were giving him. (Weed is bad!) "¡Mis estudiantes bellos, recuerdan que juventud es la más importancia parte de tus vidas!" (My beautiful students, remember that youth is the most important part of your lives!)

Naruto groaned out loud and resisted the urge to bang his head against the desk. The girl sitting next to him was fervently looking through her Bible-sized, Spanish-English dictionary, trying to figure out what Gai-sensei had been saying. He stole a look at her and shook his head.

"It's useless…" Naruto whispered to the girl. "He talks way too fast." A couple other kids who overheard nodded in agreement.

"¡Solamente _Español _Naruto!" Gai-sensei dashed over to Naruto's desk and glared at the poor boy. (Only Spanish Naruto!)

"Ah… lo siento mucho. Naruto no comprende Español." The girl blushed brightly as Gai-sensei stared at her intensely. (I'm very sorry. Naruto does not understand Spanish.)

"Oh, do you understand me now?" Gai-sensei blinked his large black eyes.

"YES!!!" More than half the class yelled back at him.

"Alright then, students!!!!!!!!! Let us open our books to… CHAPTER ONE!! Let us begin the lesson!" Gai-sensei dashed over to the podium and thrust their textbook up in the air. He opened it and began rapidly flipping pages.

"Umm… Gai-sensei… class is over." One of Naruto's classmates pointed out. Everyone instantly began packing up. It was time to get out of there. Gai-sensei slammed the book shut and threw it across the room. Some of the kids had to duck as to avoid the book from smashing them in the faces.

"OH! Well, in that case, do pages 15 and 16 in your workbooks. Go forth and be merry! Drink and dance! Enjoy your youth!!" Gai-sensei pointed towards the door excitedly. "Now depart my youthful students! Depart back to rooms! Give your roommate a big hug!"

"My roommate's a jackass… I'm not hugging that fool." One boy uttered darkly and stomped out of the room. Naruto shook his head as he stood up. He turned to the girl he had been sitting next to.

"Thanks for whatever you said before." Naruto grinned brightly at her.

"Oh… it was nothing." The girl blushed again. Something about her seemed vaguely familiar to Naruto. He found himself staring intently at the girl, who turned even redder under his gaze.

_This chick blushes a lot. Wait a minute… she looks like Neji!!!_ "Hey do you know this sophomore named Neji? He's my RA." Naruto cocked his head to one side.

"Oh, really? He's my cousin." The girl seemed to relax a bit.

"Cool. What's your name?" Naruto laughed. That made sense.

"H-Hinata." The blue-haired girl, Hinata, held out her hand. Naruto happily pumped it up and down.

"Nice to meet you, Hinata." Naruto released the timid girl's hand. "Aw man, I'm so hungry… hey, wanna go get some lunch?" Now normally, Naruto wouldn't be so bold, but he felt bad for the shy girl. Plus she had saved him from Gai-sensei.

"Oh… sure!" Hinata gulped and nodded her head. Naruto and Hinata left the classroom together. The blonde kept chattering on and on and every once in a while Hinata would respond. The two teens were walking through campus towards the food court.

"So… where do you live?" Naruto asked casually.

"I live in Hoshigaki Hall 261." Hinata answered, wringing her hands together.

"Really? I live on the first floor!" Naruto let out a laugh. "I had no idea we lived so close to each other!"

"I… noticed." Hinata mumbled, but Naruto still caught her words.

"Well, in that case, why don't we do our Spanish homework together? Cuz we live so close to each other." Naruto finally realized why he was so excited. It was because he was about to eat. They had finally reached the food court.

"Tarea… the word for homework is tarea." Hinata gave the blonde a small smile.

"Oh cool… I finally know a word in Spanish… TAREA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Naruto screamed out his new word. "Tarea. Tarea. Tarea. Hey, hey, Hinata, let's do our Spanish _tarea_ after we eat, ok?"

"Ok, Naruto." Hinata giggled, shaking her head.

"RAMEN! TAREA! RAMEN! THEN TAREA!!" Naruto paid no attention to the looks he was getting from the other college students. Hinata on the other hand, began blushing as if they were all staring at her. It was going to be an interesting lunch…

* * *

Naruto thought Hinata's room was adorable. Everything was purple: her chair, her pillows, her comforter, and even the two stuffed animals on her bed. She had various posters and pictures and cards put up all over her side of the room. 

"What's your roommate like?" Naruto asked Hinata, who was sitting at her desk. The blonde was sitting on her rather comfortable bed. It was comfy enough to take a nap in and Naruto didn't even take naps. Naruto studied her roommate's side of the room, which was covered with pink, frilly things, articles of clothing, and obnoxiously huge posters of half-naked men. Not that Naruto minded.

"Umm… her name is Ino. She's ok, I guess." Hinata blinked her pale, lavender eyes. "We get along nicely."

"Just nice?" Naruto asked teasingly. "Is there something wrong with her? Does she smell?" _I hope she's not a bitch… if she is then we're doing tarea in MY room!_

"No, she doesn't… there's nothing wrong with her… she's just a bit louder than I am." Hinata blushed yet again. "It took me a while, but I got used to listening to her music."

"What kinda music does she listen to?"

"Well… she's currently obsessed with the Spice Girls so…"

"THE SPICE GIRLS?!?" Naruto's jaw dropped open. "Hinata, if you EVER need to escape, don't hesitate to come to my room. Actually, if you ever need therapy-"

"Why would Hinata need therapy?" A girl with pale, blonde hair stalked into the room. "And who are _you_?" She threw her backpack onto her bed, plopped down onto her chair, and turned her laptop on.

"Oh! Ino, this is Naruto. We're in the same Spanish class." Hinata stood up, gesturing to Naruto.

"Ok. No sex while I'm here, Hinata." Ino said without turning around. Poor Hinata almost passed out. The blue-haired girl quickly sat back down and refused to look at Naruto. "And I have pink, fuzzy handcuffs under my bed if you need-"

"Um… I'm gay." Naruto raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You are?!?" Ino whirled around and leapt up. "Finally, I thought there weren't any gay guys here!" The blonde girl ran over to Hinata's bed and sat down next to Naruto.

"Can you not broadcast my sexual orientation? I don't want everyone to know…" Naruto rolled his blue eyes.

"Oh, okay. I can keep a secret." Ino grinned widely. "So… have you seen any hot guys around here?"

"Umm…" Naruto inwardly began to panic. He threw Hinata a look, begging her with his eyes to help him, to save him from Ino.

"I-Ino, we have to do our Spanish homework now." Hinata cut in, saving the day once again.

"Ok fine…" Ino pouted and rolled her eyes. "I have to go do my laundry anyways…" The blonde jumped up and returned to her side of the room. She began bustling around, throwing piles and piles of clothes into a gigantic, pink hamper.

"Crap… where's the bathroom, Hinata?" Naruto asked a few seconds later.

"Oh… it's just down the hall. You can't miss it." Hinata replied. Naruto stood up and walked towards their door.

"If you see any hot guys in there, tell me how big they are!" Ino shouted out after Naruto. The boy almost fell over, but he pretended not to hear the girl and quickly left the room.

_How can Hinata put up with her?_ Naruto began walking down the hall, offhandedly looking inside the room next door to Hinata's. The blonde instantly stopped in his tracks. Sasuke was in that room. Sasuke. This was his chance! Fuck the potty!

Naruto gulped and hastily knocked on the door, even though it was open. Sasuke turned around and saw Naruto. "Hey." The teen smiled at Naruto and the blonde took that as permission to come in, which he did gladly. "What's up?"

"Uh… nothing." Naruto realized that he had no idea what to say. He was in the presence of a hot, demi-god and his entire vocabulary had melted away. Sasuke walked over to his desk and sat down, while Naruto chose to lean against the wall. He didn't trust himself to move and Sasuke didn't ask him to sit.

"So how are you classes?" Sasuke looked up at Naruto, who felt as if panic had taken away his voice, too. But then out of nowhere, he began babbling and he felt as if he couldn't stop:

"Umm… I have philosophy, which is cool, but my teacher is a bit weird. Psychology is ok, it's kinda easy, but I don't mind. Then I'm in some writing class and we're reading Gilgamesh and I think our first essay is due next week but I'm not sure. But my Spanish class… it's ridiculous! Our teacher has no idea what he's doing and he only talks in Spanish and I don't UNDERSTAND Spanish, except the word tarea, it's the first word I learned and you know, he gives a lot of it! He gives us tarea all the time!" Naruto finally stopped when he locked eyes with Sasuke.

"Really?" Sasuke quirked an eyebrow, clearly amused with Naruto's words.

"Yeah!" Naruto went on breathlessly. _He must think I'm a complete idiot…_

"That sucks." Sasuke shook his head. "Well if you ever need help, come see me."

"Do you know Spanish?" Naruto's blue eyes widened.

"Yeah… somehow I got into a two-hundred level class. I don't know how I did." Sasuke grinned lazily and Naruto almost passed out.

"Oh. That's cool. Thanks!" The blonde beamed at Sasuke. _He's so nice! Not to mention fucking gorgeous. Emphasis on the fucking… and the gorgeous. And I think Kami-sama made put his room next to Hinata's on purpose. _"Ah! I almost forgot… where's the bathroom?"

"The bathroom? It's down the hall, to your left." Sasuke responded instantly.

"Oh ok. Thanks… I'm gonna head out now." Naruto couldn't stop smiling.

"Ok. See ya." Sasuke shook his head, a smirk on his face.

"Bye." Naruto called out over his shoulder as he left Sasuke's room. _I wonder who his roommate is…_ Naruto walked down the hall, his spirits completely lifted. Nothing could bring him down from this high, nothing. _I just had a conversation with Sasuke… and it was beautiful. He's beautiful.**

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** _

**We learned in psychology how faulty our memories actually are... And the thought of forgetting about my days with Sasuke is terrifying at best. I mean, I won't forget the big things, the special moments we had, but what about the little things? I don't want to forget those either, but it's inevitable. I wish I had a special category in my long term memory just for him. And no matter what, no matter how many new experiences I have, I'd never forget anything about the time we've shared together, I'd remember everything. **

**I'm debating with myself about whether I should go see him or not. I know I've seen him already but I wasn't there for long. I know he doesn't mind me being there, but he doesn't necessarily want me there either. Being addicted to a person is a bad thing. It means when I'm not in class, when I'm not with friends, when I'm not doing… tarea, when I'm not tutoring, when I'm not watching TV… all I want is to be by his side. And I would trade everything and anything to be with him right now. Ain't love grand?

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Hi again! Please leave a review and let me know what you thought of it :) The next chapter is about Sasuke helping Naruto with Spanish, Naruto meeting Sasuke's friends, and our antagonist is revealed: Sasuke's roommate's girlfriend.**


	3. Chapter 2: Scarface, Tayuya, and Ganja

**Heyz everyone :) Chapter 2 is here and ready to read! Enjoy! I listened to two albums while writing this: the Across the Universe Soundtrack and Lupe Fiasco's The Cool. Yea lol I like all kinds of music. And for the very end of the chapter, I had Dirt Off Your Shoulders (Bittersweet Symphony Remix) on repeat. If you find any mistakes like grammatical errors, please let me know. **

**Thank you: TKM, professorkatze, Bee Bop, XxTypoMasterxX & shadowphoenix143 for reviewing!** **

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**

**CHAPTER TWO:**

**Scarface, Tayuya, and Ganja

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**

**In all honesty, I wish I was psychic. You see, that way I'd be able to tell whether Sasuke likes me or not. I've got this theory, see. I think he only tolerates me because I know his secret. He knows that if he isn't nice to me, there's a good chance I could get him put in jail. I could talk, I could tell the Resident Director. Actually I'm being overdramatic… or am I? But even that doesn't explain the last two hugs. **

**Well call me crazy, but actually, I am. While he hugged me he rubbed my back… possibly the best feeling in the world and I must confess, feeling him do it made me want to purr. I'd be his sex kitten, I really would. Well that was a bit much and I wish I could recant that statement, but I should be honest with myself, shouldn't I? I'd give him my virginity. **

**Anyways, the whole him rubbing my back thing? A-freaking-mazing! It makes me feel special, like I belong to him. But I know it's not true. But at the same time, I ask myself: Why does he do it? He holds me longer than I expect to… and then he rubs my back. I can't figure out why he does it and it bothers me. So I've been coming up with theories instead of working on my research project. I'm a fucking mess. Actually I'm done with theories… I've picked up Shika's habit of daydreaming…**

**

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**

It was the end of September and Naruto was proud of himself. He had assimilated into college life quite easily. He had never missed a class (or an appointment with his advisor again) and he always handed his work in on time. He had gotten care packages from Ero-sennin, Tsunade-baachan, and Iruka. And the blonde had made many good friends: Shikamaru, Kiba, Hinata, Ino, Kiba's roommate Choji, and of course, Sasuke. He knew other people from his classes and upperclassmen like Neji and Tenten, but he wasn't really good friends with them yet. And luckily, with help from Lee, Tenten, and Hinata, Kiba and Naruto managed to convince Neji to let Akamaru stay in the dorm.

The boy was sitting at his desk, staring at his laptop. He was debating with himself. He had been doing this a lot lately. He had an essay in Spanish due tomorrow… and he didn't understand the instructions because they were all written in Spanish. Shikamaru was rapidly typing away at his computer, munching on chips.

"This sucks!!" The blonde groaned loudly. He would've went up to Hinata's room, but the poor girl was buried under six tons of bio homework.

"Just go to Sasuke's room and ask him." Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"But I can't!" Naruto squealed and tugged on his spiky locks. A few days ago, Naruto had told Shikamaru about his crush on the raven-haired boy. Shikamaru surprisingly didn't care about Naruto's homosexuality. _"Well… that explains a lot."_ Had been the boy's response. But at least the lazy teen was a good listener… or he pretended to listen while Naruto babbled on and on about Sasuke.

"Troublesome… it's in your best interests to seek help from someone in a higher level Spanish class." The brunette was annoyed... why did _he_ have to think for the blonde?

"Well… when you put it that way…" Naruto grinned widely and stood up, holding a piece of paper. "I'm off! Thanks Shikamaru!!"

"No problem." Naruto's roommate snorted in disbelief as the boy dashed out of the door. "I never thought that when I wished for a guy to be gay, I'd be wishing it for someone else…" Because if Sasuke and Naruto got together, then the blonde would be spending more time in his room which would mean peace and quiet. Then the boy could sleep all day and not have to worry about Naruto reminding him to go to class or do his homework. It was troublesome, really.

Naruto ran up the stairs and down the hall, stopping at Sasuke's door. _Can I do this? I can do this…_ The blonde stared at the numbers 263 and the numbers stared back at him. He could chicken out and just go next door to Hinata's room and she would gladly help him. But the door was slightly ajar, which meant he was inside.

Naruto gulped and slowly pushed the door open, leaning half his body in the room to see if anyone was inside. What he saw almost shocked him. Sasuke was standing in front of his desk… without a shirt on… looking right at him.

"Aaah! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" The blonde blushed instantly. _Oh my God he was getting undressed! I'm so stupid! Stupid!_ "I… I was just coming to visit."

"No, no, it's ok." Sasuke smiled. "Don't be sorry for visiting." The boy was wearing faded jeans that were low on his hips and Naruto almost started drooling. The blonde walked in and Sasuke sat down at his desk. There was an extra chair in the room near the wall and he happily took a seat. Naruto wasn't sure he'd be able to stand up any longer.

"Well… um actually, I needed some help with this." Naruto shoved the infamous sheet of paper at Sasuke. The dark-haired beauty took it and looked it over. "I don't know what all the words mean…"

"Well you're pretty much writing an autobiography. You have to write about where you were born, where you live, your family, your friends, the school you went to…" Sasuke trailed off as his dark eyes continued to read the paper.

"Can I have something to write with? Cuz I don't wanna forget what you said." Naruto asked timidly. _I wonder who his roommate is…_ While Sasuke's side of the room was slightly messy, his roommate's side was immaculate. The bed was made and all of the boy's books had been neatly stacked on the floor. The only thing that seemed to be out of place was the ocarina lying on top of the boy's pillow.

"I'll do it." Sasuke took a pencil out of a drawer and began writing on the paper. Naruto took the time to really study Sasuke's side of the room. There was a poster on the wall above the foot of his bed of a gnome standing by a sparkling mushroom in a lush, green forest and a whiteboard on the wall next to his desk and it was covered in messy writing. "Okay, here you go." The boy handed it back to Naruto.

"Thanks!" The blonde grinned widely. _Yes, now I can start it!_ Sasuke stood up and took a white poster out from behind his laundry basket.

"Where do you think I should put this?" Sasuke asked Naruto.

"Well… the wall by your bed is pretty bare. It should go in the middle of the wall." Naruto pointed to the approximate spot. Sasuke nodded and got up on top of his bed. _He really needs to put a shirt on…_ Naruto bit his lip as he stared at Sasuke's back. _I think I need to leave soon…_ He almost burst out laughing as he finally saw what was on the poster. It was a black and white picture of Scarface.

"How is it?" Sasuke turned back to look at Naruto.

"It's good." Naruto nodded his head, smiling. Sasuke jumped off his bed and sat down at his desk again. "Anyways, I gotta go work on this essay."

"Ok… good luck." Sasuke smirked and shook his head. Just as Naruto was about to open the door and leave, it burst open and two people burst in. The first was a skinny boy with pale, blonde hair and the second was a girl with long, red hair. The blonde boy sat down on the other bed in the room and the redhead sat down next to him.

"Sasuke's who's he?" The blonde boy, Sasuke's roommate looked at Naruto.

"Oh. Menma, this is Naruto." Sasuke smiled at Naruto. "Naruto, this is my roommate, Menma."

"Nice to meet you." Menma grinned widely at Naruto, his dark gray eyes sparkling.

"Hey! Aren't you fucking going to introduce me?" Naruto almost jumped at the angry tone in the redhead's voice.

"Oh… sorry. Naruto, this is Tayuya." Sasuke didn't seem too sorry.

"Yea and Menma's mine, so don't get any fucking ideas faggot!" Tayuya snapped out, glaring daggers at Naruto.

_What the hell?!?_ Naruto blushed and found that he couldn't say anything in response. "Tayuya!" Sasuke and Menma shouted at the same time.

"What? I'm just letting him fucking know how things are gonna be!" Tayuya didn't seem to find anything wrong with what she had said.

"I'm really sorry, Naruto." Menma stood up, smiling sadly.

"Um yea… it's fine. I'm gonna go now." Naruto practically ran out of the room and straight next door into Hinata's room. The blue-haired girl whirled around in shock as Naruto tore into her room. She had been typing up her bio lab and then Hurricane Naruto had arrived. "HINATA!!" The blonde wailed and leapt onto her comfy bed.

"Naruto-kun, what's wrong?" Hinata stood up.

"I'm never going back there again. Never!" Naruto groaned loudly and proceeded to punch Hinata's big, fluffy pillow. "I'm so stupid! Stupid!"

"No, you're not." Hinata sat down next to Naruto. "What happened?"

"I… I don't know." Naruto sighed and rolled over so that he was lying on his back. "Do you know Menma?"

"Umm… yes I do. He plays the ocarina. He's nice." Hinata blinked her pale eyes.

"Well his girlfriend's a bitch!" Naruto screamed, not caring that she was in the next room. "I can't go back there! I can't! Not if she's gonna be there."

"Oh… you mean, Tayuya? Yeah… she's mean. She has an attitude problem." Hinata shook her head. "But don't let that keep you from Sasuke."

"Hinata, I _CAN'T_ go back there." Naruto didn't think Hinata understood the gravity of the situation.

"Yes you can! You just have to make sure that she's not there when you go to see Sasuke." Hinata pointed out.

"And how did she know I was gay anyways? I've never met her before! I'll never be able to look at Sasuke the same way again. She's probably talking about me right now." Naruto was absolutely miserable. "And Sasuke's going to listen to her and then he won't like me at all…"

"Ok, fine. Next time you go to see him, I'll come with you." Hinata sighed.

"Really?" Naruto sat up and stared at the shy girl. "You'd do that for me?"

"Yes… I'll do it." Hinata smiled as Naruto's face lit up.

"Hinata, you're the best!" Naruto jumped off of her bed and did a little dance. _Man… she hasn't stuttered at all yet. Wonder why?_ But the blonde knew better than to ask her. Hinata blushed brightly at Naruto's praise and turned away. "I promise whenever you need help with a guy, I'll be there!"

"T-thanks, Naruto-kun." Hinata gulped and stood up quickly.

_Balls! I jinxed it…_ Naruto shook his head as the girl went back to her desk. "Where's Ino?"

"She's at the gym." Hinata replied easily. "She should be back soon."

"In that case, I'm going to take my leave." Naruto let out a laugh. "Naw, I'm just kidding. I'm gonna get my laptop and bring it up here and work on my essay."

"You can use the Bible if you want." Hinata leaned over to grab her notes.

"Haha yes!" Naruto shot a fist in the air and danced out of the door, his misery forgotten. (The "Bible" was what Naruto had christened Hinata's giganmous Spanish-English dictionary.) The blonde happily sauntered back downstairs to his room.

**

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**

**In all honesty, Tayuya doesn't scare me as much as she used to back then. She's still a bitch with an attitude problem and she still disrespects me, but I don't let it get to me. There was a time when I cared about what she thought of me, but now I don't care. **

**I remember… if I knew Tayuya was in their room, I wouldn't go in. I let her come in between Sasuke and me. But I couldn't help it, she unnerved me. But eventually, I got over my fear of the dragon. And clearly, if she ever did talk about me while I wasn't there, it didn't affect Sasuke's opinion of me. I used to daydream that if Sasuke and I went out, then we'd all hang out and be friends. I've given up on that long ago. **

**However, I've got enough problems on my plate and I can't please everyone so she'll just have to deal. I can see it in her brown eyes every time I walk into their room, always full of disgust. Well, at least I get along with Menma. I still don't understand what he sees in her, but you can't control who you love, no matter how vulgar they are. In my opinion, the only thing they have in common is their love of music. They **_**do**_** sound beautiful when they play together: Tayuya on her flute and Menma on his ocarina. **

**It's scary when I think back to the first half of my freshman year. Sasuke had such an impact on me. I remember when I had to see Pan's Labyrinth for the first time. What Sasuke said to me that day, it made me realize that he really wasn't an ordinary boy.

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**

Naruto was storming around Hinata's room impatiently. A whole bunch of Spanish classes had to get together in the auditorium and watch Pan's Labyrinth. Now Naruto had heard of the movie, but he wasn't all that excited about it. Naruto and Hinata had to leave soon, because if they didn't, they wouldn't get good seats. And Naruto actually had to pay attention during the movie because Gai-sensei was making them write an essay on it.

Hinata was talking on her cell phone with her father and Naruto was ready to bang his head against the wall. He just wanted to get this all over with. The blonde rolled his eyes and walked out of her room and straight into Sasuke's room. _Score! He's alone._ Naruto observed. He didn't mind Menma, but being alone with Sasuke was always better.

"Hey." Sasuke turned to Naruto and smiled. "What's up?"

"Nothing… we have to go watch this movie for Spanish class. Pan's Labyrinth." Naruto sighed and plopped down into the extra chair.

"Oh really? That's a good movie." Sasuke remarked.

"Ugh… _everyone's_ saying that!" The blonde groaned out loud.

"Well… you just have to go into it with an open mind." Sasuke said carefully and Naruto stared at Sasuke, his blue eyes widening as if seeing the boy for the first time.

"O-okay." Naruto found his voice again. "Oh crap we have to go watch it now!" The blonde jumped up, shouted his goodbyes over his shoulder, and ran out.

"There you are!" Hinata shook her head at Naruto, walking towards him. "We have to go." She grabbed onto his arm and proceeded to drag him down the hallway.

"Yeah… okay." Naruto smiled thoughtfully as he was tugged along. He was replaying Sasuke's words in his head, over and over again.

**

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**

**Now I still don't know why those certain words resonated with me, but they did. I guess I wasn't expecting something so insightful to come out of his mouth and he impressed me. He's been doing that lately, the whole impressing me thing. And I ended up loving that movie, Pan's Labyrinth. I'd see it again. **

**But the thing is, as much as I idolize Sasuke, he isn't perfect. He's got his secrets, too. And I'm proud to say he's trusted me to keep them. I've always been smart, I've always been a good guesser, and my instincts are better than anyone I know. I observe and I see things and no matter what others may think, I actually do pay attention to what's going on around me. **

**Not many people would want to deal with what Sasuke's into. Unfortunately, I've always been a flexible person. I say unfortunate because by the time I discovered it, it was too late. Nothing Sasuke does can bother me, I love him too much. I see straight past his actions and into his heart. And it should bother me, any other person would back away and leave. How much am I risking by being in his life? Other people have morals and standards and they live by them and follow them meticulously. But I'm not like other people. I'm tolerant and I don't judge… but I do fall in love.

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**

Naruto happily knocked on Sasuke's door and sauntered in as Sasuke opened it. There were two unfamiliar boys in the room already. The blonde studied them closely. The first boy had short, black hair and an emotionless face. He looked slightly similar to Sasuke, but something was just off about him. The second boy had brown hair held up with a blue headband, causing his hair to rise in spikes and dark shades obscured his eyes. They were both sitting on Sasuke's bed watching TV, which left the familiar chair for Naruto.

"Hey. Naruto. This is Shino and this is Sai." Sasuke gestured to the other boys.

"Hi. Nice to meet you both." Naruto smiled lightly as he took his seat.

"Nice to meet you, Naruto." Shino replied politely.

"Mmm…" Sai turned away and returned his attention to the television.

"So, how was your weekend?" Sasuke looked at Naruto.

"Umm… it was pretty good. My friend Choji has a car so he took all of us out to eat at this really nice restaurant." Naruto licked his lips, thinking back to that delicious meal. "What about you?"

"Me? I had an okay weekend." Sasuke answered, but then frowned. "Actually, wait. It was going well, but then…"

"What happened?" Naruto cocked his head to one side.

"Someone stole something from me." Sasuke scowled darkly.

"Oh… I'm sorry." Naruto smiled sadly. "I hope you get it back."

"Yeah, like someone's gonna give a bag of-" Sai broke off at Shino cleared his throat. Naruto's eyes widened as his brain finished the sentence for him: _weed.**

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** _

**And you know, we all just went on talking as if that part of the conversation had never happened. But I knew. And they knew I knew. They were probably worried back then that I would tell on them. But I was foolish, I wanted Sasuke to like me and I didn't want those drugs to stand in the way. So what did I do? I set out to show Sasuke that his drug usage didn't bother me in the least. **

**After hearing one of my classmates in Spanish talking about the show Weeds, I downloaded the first two seasons and watched them on my computer. Shika even watched some of them with me. I gave Sasuke a website Ero-sennin showed me so he could watch season 3 on his computer. The three of them absolutely love that show and now it's something we can mutually talk about. Not gonna lie, I enjoyed watching Weeds and I fully plan on watching the next season. Another day, I downloaded two songs on Sasuke's computer and played them for him: Addicted by Amy Winehouse and Because I got high by Weird Al Yankovic. He liked both of them; I still remember the way he laughed. **

**All the while asking myself, why did I have to fall for a pothead? Of all boys to fall for, why one that rejoices in seeing a tiny plastic bag full of ganja? All the while knowing that I can never make him that happy. And of course, it gets better. It always gets better… **

**

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That's it for now. If some of you were wondering why I put Menma in this fic, it's because last year when I watched episodes 213-215, I cried at the end. Needless to say, Menma impacted me just as much as he impacted Naruto and I thought he deserved a second chance. I hope you liked this chapter and the next one should be up next week!**


	4. Chapter 3: While My Guitar Gently Weeps

**Hi everyone!! I'm really sorry I haven't updated in a really long time. But I've been mad busy, professors just load the homework on- tests, papers, projects, etc. Not to mention I was in the hospital last month haha that wasn't fun. The chapter's title is also the title of a Beatles song that I adore. As always, if there are any spelling or grammatical errors, please bring them to my attention. But anyways, here's the chapter!**

**P.s. Sorry there was a mistake in the chapter I needed to fix.**

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**CHAPTER THREE:**

"**While My Guitar Gently Weeps" **

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**Writing is the only thing that makes sense anymore. I wrote and submitted four poems to our literary magazine. I doubt any of them will make it, but I know I'm a good writer. It's the one thing that can't be taken away from me no matter what. Growing up around an author and a teacher had a lot do with it. Iruka, being an English teacher, has certainly made sure that my grammar is impeccable. Using ramen as an incentive definitely worked on me.**

**When I was younger, I used to scour through books all the time. Ero-sennin used to tease me and say that I must've been skipping paragraphs or pages, because there was no way I could read that fast. But I never did. I always read every word. I used to lose myself in books and the worlds they provided. But now, I'm not a child anymore and I don't have time to rent ten books from the library. **

**I've been thinking about you and this is why I can't do my homework. Sasuke, you're a fucking distraction. I love you, but seriously, I have a lot of shit due this week. And yet, I can't stop thinking of you. This question is always in the back of my mind: If I just stopped talking to you (instant messaging and texting included) and stopped visiting, what would you do? Would you care? Would you miss me? And you see… I can't even put that theory into practice because I can only go a few days without talking to you. Even for a dumb reason like… "What does quemado mean?" And it means "burned out", by the way. **

**I wonder if he pretends not to care about me to keep me safe. That sounds cliché but I'm grasping at straws here, I want him to care. I want him to want me and I know that the chances of this occurring are slim-to-none and yet I can't stay away from him. My thoughts and feelings are always fluctuating and I never know what to do. He is the one murky, foggy, unknown aspect of my life. **

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It was the end of September and things continued to go well for Naruto. Thanks to Hinata and Sasuke, he was starting to understand Spanish more and more. Psychology was like second nature for him and he barely needed to study for that class. As expected, he got an A on his first test. Philosophy was somewhat difficult; partially because his professor was so eccentric and partially because Naruto couldn't always wrap his brain around the philosophical concepts. It took him a long time to figure out the difference between intrinsic value and extrinsic value. Luckily, Shika was practically an expert in philosophy and if the blonde caught him on a good day, he would get some help. In his English class they were reading the Bhagavad Gita. Their second paper was due in a few days.

Naruto was sitting in Sasuke's extra chair, as always. He lifted both his legs so that they were in the air and proceeded to stare at them. Sasuke was doing something at his computer and Shino was texting someone, lying comfortably on Sasuke's bed.

"Are my legs short?" The blonde cocked his head to one side. Sasuke turned around and raised an eyebrow at him.

"No…" Sasuke answered slowly.

"You have very nice legs." Shino said stoically.

"Thanks." Naruto let out a laugh.

"No problem." Shino retorted. Surprisingly enough, Shino and Naruto got along. Well, Shino was really chill, nothing really bothered him, not even Naruto's random comments or questions. "Do you drink or smoke?"

"No." Naruto answered easily. "When I was little and I saw Ero-sennin-well his name is Jiraiya but that's what I call him-had sake and I wanted some so he let me take a sip and it tasted awful, but he still made me swallow it." He made a disgusted face. "That turned me off drinking forever." Sasuke and Shino shared a look, smirks on their faces.

"When I was little, one of my uncles told me to go get a beer off the table. It was open and while I was carrying it over to him, I tripped and it got all over me and in my mouth." Sasuke chuckled at the memory and Shino merely snorted.

_Yeah well… clearly that didn't turn you off drinking…_ Naruto inwardly sighed. _One day… I wanna ask him why he started smoking weed. I don't get it… he's so nice, he's smart… it just doesn't fit. I don't understand… _

"Oh yea… Menma's getting a new TV soon. I can't wait." Sasuke continued on. "It's a flat screen."

"HD?" Shino inquired.

"Yeah…" Sasuke grinned lazily.

"Oh shit!" Naruto stood up. "I have a paper to write!" Shino rolled his eyes and shook his head. Sasuke's body shook with laughter. "Gotta go!"

"Bye." Sasuke's dark eyes sparkled as Shino waved at the blonde. Naruto ran out of Sasuke's room, through the hallway, down the stairs, and practically leapt into his room. Shikamaru was lazily lying on his bed, staring off into space.

"Yo." Shikamaru waved. "Could you open the window? I think there's a breeze."

Naruto shook his head, but complied. He then sat down at his desk. "Dammit, Shikamaru, what am I gonna do?" The blonde groaned out loud, pulling at his hair.

"Call me Shika… Shikamaru is too long. Plus… my Mom uses my full name when she's pissed at me." Shika sat up slowly. "Now what's wrong with Sasuke?"

"Nothing's wrong with him! He lets me chill in his room whenever I want, he always talks to me, he's never mean to me… but…" Naruto trailed off hopelessly.

"Naruto, you've got four years to get him to fall in love with you. The more time you spend with someone, the closer you're going to become. So don't give up. Imagine how much harder it'd be if you didn't get along… or if he lived in a different dorm, or if he had a girlfriend. He's single, he's friendly… and he tolerates you. I think that's a miracle in itself." Shika snorted.

"I didn't know you could say so much at once." Naruto grinned widely. "But you're right! I must be doing something right because he hasn't told me to leave him alone or anything."

"Exactly… so can I return to my nap now?" Shika inwardly groaned.

"Sure… Shika, I'll just go to-" Naruto looked at the time on his laptop. "Wait a minute you have class in a few minutes… Shika get up you lazy bum!! You can't keep skipping class!"

"Says who?"

"Says me! Get up before I get Akamaru to give you a tongue bath!"

"Yes, Naruto-kaasan."

"… Don't call me that!"

"I might as well… you act like her."

"Are you going to class or do I have to text Kiba?"

"Why the hell would you text him if he lives right next door?"

"… That's not the point, Shika! If you don't leave now you're going to be late!"

"I can see why you're gay now… you nag like a woman."

"SHIKAMARU!!"

"Fine, fine… I guess I'll go to class."

"You'd better!" Naruto huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. Shika chuckled and finally got up off of his bed. He snatched his backpack off the floor, gave Naruto a sarcastic salute and left the room. "Jeez…" _I hope I don't ever have to counsel any lazy kids like him. Actually I can't imagine any psychologist putting up with Shika for too long. Then again, he doesn't really need one… he just needs someone to motivate him… he needs to fall in love!_

Naruto grinned to himself. It was the perfect plan. Sure, Shika had plenty of good friends (he was really tight with Choji), but he needed a strong woman like his mother to truly motivate him to do well in school. See, Naruto knew Shika was a genius, because whenever the blonde needed help with his work, Shika always helped him. And the brunette always knew what he was doing.

_Forget writing my essay… Operation Find-Shika-a-Girlfriend has now begun!_ Naruto took his cell out and texted Hinata: 'Hina, come downstairs right away!' The shy girl responded instantly: 'Ok, Naruto-kun.' The blonde then bounded over to Kiba's room and knocked loudly.

"KIBA!!" Naruto shouted. "Get out here now!" The proud dog-owner opened the door and promptly glared at him. "Ok, come to my room right now! Let's go, let's go!"

"I was doing my bio homework." Kiba narrowed his dark eyes at Naruto.

"That can wait… fucking carpe diem or something like that."

"What?"

"We were talking about that in philosophy… although I'm not really sure what Kakashi-sensei meant by that. But it sounds good so… carpe diem! Let's go!"

"Naruto… you've got to be-" Kiba paused and stared at something behind Naruto. The blonde whirled around and saw Hinata standing there.

"Ooh, Hinata! Great, now we can get this thing started!" Naruto grabbed Kiba by the arm and pulled him out of his room. Oddly enough, the brunette wasn't protesting now. The trio entered Naruto's room and shut the door.

Naruto sat down in his chair, Kiba took Shika's chair, and Hinata sat on Shika's bed. "So… what's up?" Kiba rolled his eyes. "What do you want now?"

"We need to set Shika up with somebody. Any ideas?" Naruto grinned widely.

"… You brought us here to play matchmaker? This isn't fucking Fiddler on the Roof!" Kiba snarled, ready to get up and leave.

"I… I like that play." Hinata commented, a small blush on her cheeks.

"Really?" Kiba turned to her, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah… w-we watched the movie when I was in s-seventh grade." Hinata gulped under Kiba's strong gaze.

"Umm… so name all the single girls you know, Hinata." Naruto broke the awkward silence. _Jeez… Kiba's too intense sometimes, he's making her nervous._

"W-well… Ino is single… and she's mentioned that she thinks Shikamaru is 'hot'." Hinata began, pushing her two index fingers together.

"PERFECT!!" Naruto stood up and shot a fist in the air. "We'll all go to lunch one day… and make sure that they sit next-"

"Naruto… just because she thinks he's hot doesn't mean it's going to work out between them." Kiba groaned, resisting the urge to smack the blonde upside the head. "If you want to do this right, you should ask Shikamaru if he's interested in any girls here."

"I guess I could do that…" Naruto fingered his chin thoughtfully. "And if not, we'll set him up with Ino. It'll be a match made in Heaven!" Hinata giggled at him.

"What about you, Hinata? Would you date Shikamaru?" Kiba asked her frankly.

"W-well, I-I'm not s-sure. I m-mean he's nice, b-b-but…" Hinata's quiet voice grew even fainter as her face reddened more by the nanosecond.

"Kiba, leave Hinata alone!" Naruto scowled at the boy. What was his deal?

"Ok, ok… I have to finish my bio homework anyways. Are we done here?" Kiba stood up and Naruto nodded. "Alright then… see ya!" The brunette quickly left the room, closing the door behind him.

"I'm sorry about that Hinata. I don't know what-" Naruto began.

"N-Naruto-kun… I think I like him." Hinata blurted out, interrupting him. Blue eyes widened and stared at her for a few seconds.

"That's great Hinata!" Naruto let out a laugh. "I'm sure he likes you, too!"

"Y-you think so?" Hinata bit her bottom lip.

"Hinata, you're one of the nicest girls I know. You're cute, you're smart, and heck, if I liked boobs, I'd go for you. I really would. So of course Kiba likes you and if he doesn't he's an idiot! Why do you think he asked you if you liked Shika? Well duh because he wants you to like him! And the way he stares at you? He definitely wants on you, no doubt. This is perfect… well let's concentrate on getting you together with Kiba and THEN we can find Shika a girlfriend. How does that sound?" Naruto paused in his tirade and looked over at Hinata. The poor girl had passed out and was lying on the floor.

"… Hinata? Hinata? Oh no…" Naruto dashed over to her side and proceeded to shake the life out of her. "Hinata! Wake up!" The blue-haired girl slowly opened her pale eyes. "Jeez you scared me… what happened?"

"N-nothing…" Hinata blushed brightly and looked away from Naruto. "But… if Kiba does like me, then I want to 'get with him' on my own. Is that okay?"

"Oh… sure… I wouldn't want someone to set me up with Sasuke. I understand, Hinata. Sorry if I seemed a bit pushy." The blonde replied sheepishly.

"N-no, no, it's okay. You were just trying to help." Hinata smiled at Naruto. As if on cue, his stomach growled. "Let's go get smoothies. Then you need to work on your essay, Naruto-kun."

"Right!" Naruto stood up and helped Hinata to her feet. "Let's go!"

* * *

**I find myself thinking about how many countless hours I spent in Sasuke's room. And I remember different things, different times we've laughed together and different memories that make my heart swell. And I realize that I genuinely miss being around him.**

**We've lost our closeness; I don't know whose fault it was… I used to come to his room all the time and I don't now… he used to respond to all my texts and IMs and he doesn't now. Instead of time bringing us closer together… it brought us apart. I used to feel comfortable hugging him whenever I saw him but now I can't. I find myself talking more easily to Sai than to him and that's just ridiculous. **

**Yesterday, I was lying out in the sun with my friends and Sasuke was outside. One of his friends came over and talked to me… and yet he didn't. I was so furious, when they walked by I didn't even wave at them, despite the fact that he was looking at me. I just don't get it. Then hours later, I saw him hugging some skinny, cute girl for so long that one of her friends playfully shouted at him to let her go. And I found myself strangely detached from it. I don't care if he wants to hug up on some girl in a bikini. I know he doesn't like me… and I know he doesn't value our friendship either, he just doesn't care. **

**And believe me, getting over the latter hurt a lot more. Because to me, friendship is a powerful thing; I love my friends, I respect them, and the bonds we have are important to me… and to realize that those same values aren't important to Sasuke… no, to realize that our friendship isn't important to him… that hurt, it hurt so much. I get back at him by mentally calling him teme and sometimes asshole, but usually teme. I haven't hugged him in a really long time… and I used to miss it, but I'm stronger now. **

**And can I say that Tayuya is getting bitchier than ever? Maybe I'm overreacting, but I've been seeing a lot more of her. Temari just had to befriend her. Now she's been coming to my room, looking for her… She's stuck up, I can't stand her, but at the same time my friends tell me not to let her behavior bother me because she's nothing to me. **

**I think I've done enough bitching for the day. I don't even know which memory to pull up next… they're all in the past and what's the point in looking to the past? It's not like he remembers our times together… he doesn't give a shit, so why would he? They say that girls care too much and guys don't care enough… and in his case that's so fucking true. I never made things unnecessarily awkward between us, I never did anything wrong so why are we growing apart?**

**The way I see it, he doesn't want me around. In all the months I've known him, he's only invited me up to his room once. I always ask him if I can come up and either he says yes, says no (the answer is no if he's not in the room) or he ignores my request which means that he's in his room and he doesn't want me there or he's too fucking wasted and/or high to answer. Or he's just an asshole that opens his phone, looks at the message and closes it.**

**My friends don't want me around him (afraid of the influence he'll have on me… let's not forget he's a fucking stoner). So by shying away from him, I'd be making them all happy. But what about my happiness? I really liked being around him, I like his friends, I like his room, I fucking hate Tayuya but I'll deal… but friendship can't be a one-sided street and as much as I love him… I've got to do something for myself for once. I can't always give and give and not expect anything in return.**

* * *

I apologize, I know this chapter is a bit shorter than my other ones. I hope you enjoyed it and if you did please review!! I love reading what you guys have to say plus lol it's my birthday so I can be extra pushy about it if I want to. ;) So review! Review!

Anyways, in all seriousness, I won't be able to update for a while because the end of the semester is rapidly approaching and the next few weeks are going to be crazy as hell for me. But luckily I'll be done with classes in exactly one month so I'll be able to update more regularly. And for the record, lol, I have no problem with people who smoke marijuana. I am not and will never discriminate against people who smoke and/or drink. And as always, let's not forget that this **_IS_** fiction lol.


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